1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to automotive vehicles having air-cooled electric equipment compartments located behind a fold-down seating row.
2. Background Art
Current electric-powered vehicles (including battery electric and hybrid electric) utilize a variety of heat-producing electric components (such as batteries, battery chargers, voltage converters, and inverters). It is common to house such components in an electric compartment located within or adjacent to the vehicle passenger or cargo cabin. Such electric components typically require some amount of active cooling, which may be achieved by providing a relatively constant flow of air to the electric compartment from within the vehicle cabin and/or the exterior of the vehicle. The exhaust air from the electric compartment may be exhausted out of the vehicle through extractors and/or returned to the cabin through an exhaust air duct.
One conventional location for an electric equipment compartment is immediately behind and/or partially beneath a seating row. It is known to route the exhaust air from such a rear-mounted electric compartment through an exhaust air duct extending forwardly beneath the seating row.
Many automotive vehicles have convertible or reconfigurable interiors to maximize usable cargo volume and/or flexibility of accommodation. For example, it is common for one or more of the seats in the cabin to be movable between a generally upright, seating position and a stowed position wherein the seat back is generally parallel with and/or flush with a cargo floor. In some such convertible seating arrangements, the presence of an exhaust air duct beneath the seat conflicts with the desire to make the seat lay as low and flat as possible when in the stowed position.